NATS flight disruption: what are your compensation and refund rights?
Passengers of more than 2,000 flights affected by UK air traffic control failure are unlikely to get standard compensation.
Passengers are unlikely to get standard flight compensation – but airlines still have to look after you if your journey has been disrupted.
More than 2,100 flights arriving in or departing the UK were affected across Tuesday and Wednesday after a technical failure hit the NATS air traffic control system.
British Airways said it had cancelled almost 550 flights, affecting more than 85,000 passengers. The problem was fixed on Tuesday, but cancellations and delays continued into Wednesday as airlines worked to get aircraft and crews back into position.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has now warned that passengers whose flights were delayed or cancelled because of the NATS failure are unlikely to be entitled to the usual £220–£520 compensation.
But that does not mean you have no rights. If you have been caught up in the disruption, here’s what your airline should do.
If your flight has been cancelled
Your airline must offer you a choice between a refund or an alternative flight.
If you still want to travel, don’t automatically accept a refund. Ask your airline what replacement flight it can offer you first.
If another airline can get you to your destination significantly sooner, ask whether you can be rerouted onto that flight.
Try to give your airline the chance to arrange this before buying another ticket yourself. But if it cannot offer you a suitable alternative, you may be able to make reasonable arrangements yourself and claim the cost back.
Keep evidence of what you were offered and all your receipts.
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Can you get compensation for the NATS disruption?
Probably not if the NATS failure was the reason your flight was delayed or cancelled.
The CAA says the outage – including delays and cancellations directly caused by its knock-on effects – is likely to count as an “extraordinary circumstance” outside the airline’s control.
That means the usual fixed compensation of £220–£520 is unlikely to apply.
However, if your airline says NATS was responsible but you think there was another reason, you can challenge its decision and ask it to explain why it has rejected your compensation claim.
Your airline still has to look after you
If you are stuck waiting for a replacement flight, your airline may still have to provide reasonable food and drink, hotel accommodation if you are delayed overnight, and transport to and from your hotel.
If the airline cannot arrange this for you, you can pay reasonable costs yourself and claim them back. Keep every receipt and avoid unnecessary spending – you are unlikely to be reimbursed for things such as luxury hotels or alcohol.
If your flight is delayed by five hours or more and you decide you no longer want to travel, you can choose to abandon the journey and get a refund for the unused parts of your booking.
Travelling today? Check your flight directly with your airline before setting off for the airport.
For more on when you can claim compensation, how much you could be owed and what to do when an airline refuses your claim, read our full guide to flight delays and cancellations.
Sign up to Consumer Voice for useful updates on your rights, your money and ways to get back what you’re owed.
